Tuesday, 20 December 2011

While lots of us on Christmas Day will be moving from breakfast prosecco to Shiraz with dinner to whatever's at the back of the cupboard in the evening, for plenty of others this is the season to be sober. Orange juice, soda and lime, J20 and fruity mocktails all have their place, but this non-alcoholic mulled "wine" really hits the spot at a Christmas party. It's not too sugary so you can have more than one glass without your teeth furring up, and those lovely warming flavours - ginger, cloves and cardamom - will deliver Christmas cheer without the booze.

Add your favourite mulling spices to this. You may also want to stir some honey to sweeten it, although cranberry juice is usually plenty sweet enough.

Mulled "wine"You will need:

1 small orange

Handful of cloves

1 unwaxed lemon

1l carton of cranberry juice

1l carton of apple juice

1 tsp ground ginger

1 cinnamon stick

5 cardamom pods, gently crushed

Make it!

Stud the orange with roughly 20 cloves. Peel the rind off the lemon in long strips.

Pour the cranberry and apple juice into a large saucepan and throw everything else in, including the orange and lemon. Heat very gently until it's hot, but not boiling.

Take it off the heat and serve in small glasses. The orange and lemon peel will be good for several rounds, so simply add more of the other ingredients when you inevitably need to top everyone up.

2 comments:

I have made this drink and it is perfect for Christmas day. The ginger gives it a kick and the cranberry makes it refreshing, and you won't fall over if you drink lots of it. What more could you ask for?